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CEREMONIES 



LAYING CORNER-STONE 



f tHiHin^' 11 



SCHOHARIE, SEPT. 23, 1876. 



CEREMONIES 



LAYING THE CORNER-STONE 



THE MONUMENT 



David avilliams 



ONE OF THE (iAPTORS OF MAJOR ANDRE. 



SCHOHARIE COURT HOUSE 

September 23, 1876. 



- ''of WAS- 



ALBANY. 

WEED, PARSONS AND COMPANY, PRINTERS. 

1876. 



[ll /^i<0 



^ 



Entered, accordinR to act of Congress, in the year eighteen iiundred and 

seventy-six. 

By DANIEL KNOWEK, 

In the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE. 

Preface, -----5 

Oration, by Grrenville Tremain, ---... n 

Poem, by Alfred B. Street, 59 

Address, Historical, by Dr. Knower, 67 

Appendix to Mr. Tremain's Oration, - - - - - 89 

Affidavit of Isaac Van Wart, ---... 49 

Affidavit of John Paulding, ------- .50 

Autobiography of David Williams, - - - - - 51 

Certificate of Inhabitants of Westchester county, - - - 48 

Inscriptions on Monuments to Andre's Captors, - - - 76 

Letter from Andre to Miss Seward, - - - - - 39 

Letter of Col. Talmadge, ---.-.. 54 

Letter of Col. Lamb to Col. Livingston, - - - - - 41 

Letter of John Gebhard, ----... 75 

Letter of I. R. Simms, Historian, ------ 77 

Papers found on Andre, ------.41 

Remarks of Chief Justice Marshal, ------ 39 

The Old Fort. - 81 



PREFACE 



The purpose of this publication is to perpetuate the formal 
part of the ceremonies which occurred at Schoharie on the 
ninety-sixth anniversary of the Capture of Major Andre, and 
also to record in an enduring form a brief statement of the 
manner in which the people of Schoharie county and the 
surrounding country responded to the suggestion, that the 
grave of David Williams, one of Andre's captors, should 
be permanently honored by a monument worthy of the 
historic act with which his name is associated. 

The following extract is taken from a description, in the 
local press, of the celebration which occurred at Schoharie 
on the 23d day of September, 1876: 

" Saturday dawned cloudy and cool, but not threatening. 
The streets were dry but not dusty, and the committee-men 
in purple ribbons and white ribbons were busily performing 
the various duties assigned to them before eight o'clock in 
the morning. People were coming in from every quarter 
at that early hour, and no one seemed to think that Old 
Probabilities, who announced rain, knew any thing about 
the weather. The cars from either direction were crowded 
inside, and even on their roofs. 

"At 10 a. m. the steady stream of incoming people was 
augmented by the arrival of the excursion trains from Albany 
and Troy, and the day was fairly begun. The Committee of 
Reception was on hand at the depot with carriages for the 
orator and notables, and mounted marshals were also in 



6 

attendaneo. As soon as the train stopped, our visitors from 
Albany and Troy disembarked. First came the Albany 
Zouave Cadets, Co. A, 10th Eegiment, in command of Cap- 
tain John H. Reynolds, and headed by Austin's Band; then 
came the carriages with Hon. Charles Holmes, president 
of the day; the orator of the day, Grexville Tremaix, 
Esq., of Albany; the poet of the day, Alfred B. Sweet, 
of Albany; Daniel Knower, Ralph Brewster, com- 
missioners ; several descendants of David Williams ; Sena- 
tor W. C. Lamont ; J. R. Simms, historian, of Scholuuie 
county; Hon. S. L. Mayham, N. La F. Bachman, Esq., 
Hon. S. H. Sweet, of Albany, Col. C. C. Kromer, Prof. 
S. SiAS, Charles Courier, Esq., A. A. Hunt, Esq., 
Hon. John Westover, and Dr. W. T. Lamont and many 
others. The carriages were followed by the "Niagara" 
Engine and Eagle Hose Companies of Schoharie, headed 
by the Cobleskill Cornet Band, all of them making a fine 
appearance in their handsome uniform. Then came the 
Tibbitts Corps of Veterans from Troy, with their tall shakos, 
and headed by Doring's Band. These all moved up to 
Knower avenue, where the procession was formed and the 
citizens in carriages brought up the rear of the order above 
mentioned. 

" The line of March was up Knower avenue to Bridge street, 
down Bridge street to Main street, down Main street to the 
Old Stone Fort, where the exercises of laying the corner 
stone were to take place. When the head of the line reached 
the Stone Fort, the road was full of carriages the entire mile 
between it and the village, and others were still coming, 
and the sidewalks were crowded the entire distance witli 
people on their way to the Fort. Only about one-half of 
the people could get inside the grounds and in the street 
which passes by the grounds surrounding the Stone Fort, 



and these were estimated by competent judges to nnmbor 
5,000. We do not doubt that there were 10,000 people in 
the vilhige that day. xls soon as possible order was restored, 
and Hon. Chas. Holmes, president of the day, announced 
the following programme: 

ORDER OF EXERCISES. 

Singiug of Whittier's Hymn by the Schoharie Musical Association. 

Prayer by Rev. William H. Handy. 

Singing of the '• STAR Spangled Banner " by the Schoharie Musical 

Association. 

Oration by Grenville Tremain, of Albany. 

Music by Doring's Band. 

Poem, written by Alfred B. Street, of Albany, and read by N. La 

F. Bachman, Esq., of Schoharie. 

Singing of "America" by the Schoharie Musical Association. 

Historical Address by Dr. Knower, of Schoharie. 

Music by Austin's Band. 

•'The singing by the Schoharie Musical Association, 
composed of Clarence C. Lassell and Mrs. C. 0. Lassell, 
Mrs. Wilson, Mrs. Morehouse, the Misses Ida Matham, 
Mary E. Smith, Eliza Warner, Libbie Krum and Jennie 
Zeh, and four young men, elicited hearty applause and many 
remarks of approval. Upon the speaker's stand, among 
others, were two grandsons of David Williams, of the same 
name, and a number of his descendants." 

The audience, at the close of the ceremonies, on motion 
of Hon. S. L. Matham, unanimously requested Messrs. 
Tremain, Street and Knower to furnish copies of their 
productions for publication. 



ORATION 



GRENVILLE TREMAIN. 



ORATION, 



Me. President and Fellow- Citizens — In that 
temple of silence and reconciliation wliere the enmi- 
ties of twenty generations lie buried, in the tender 
and solemn gloom of that venerable abbey wherein 
is gathered the honored dust of England's bravest 
and best, surrounded by "royal sarcophagus and 
carved shrine, and by fading banners which tell of 
the knights of former time ; where the Chathams 
and Mansiields repose, and where orators and poets 
lie," is a conspicuous monument, bearing this in- 
scription : 

" Saceed to the memory of Major John Andre, 
who, raised by his merit at an early period of 

HIS LIFE TO THE RANK OF AdJUTANT-GtENERAL OF THE 

British forces in America, and employed in an 

IMPORTANT but HAZARDOUS ENTERPRISE, FELL A SACRI- 
FICE TO HIS ZEAL FOR HIS KING AND COUNTEY." 

By command of England's king, George the Third' 
was this monument raised in Westminster Abbey. 
The sculptor, true to the historical fact, has pictured 



12 

and perpetuated the singular sense of pain and grief 
entertained by those who were the foes of him whose 
name is thus prominently carved in this temple of 
fame. Contemplating, as it were, with bowed head 
this rare homage of a great nation to her dead, the 
spectator is moved to inquire more minutely into the 
events of this life so grandly immortalized. What 
has won so much in a career of only twenty-nine 
years ? In this sacred mausoleum of England's 
mighty dead, where, 

Through long-drawn aisle and fretted vault, 

sweep memories of those who have enriched the lan- 
guage, ennobled the human intellect, elevated hu- 
manity, or perpetuated, in immortal verse the emo- 
tions and passions of men, on every side are names, 
the very utterance of which is an era, an army, an 
anthem, an empire. To associate with these mighty 
dead, how incalculable the honor ! How indelible 
the record here engraven ! How immortal the fame 
here perpetuated ! 

And yet this man thus wept by his foes and im- 
mortalized by his country wks an enemy to Ameri- 
can liberty, a foe to republicanism, whose death was 
ignoble, and whose ashes reposed for forty years 
under the fi'ee soil of our own land, marked only by 
a tree whose fruit never blossomed.^ That monu- 
ment to the memory of John Andre would never 



18 

have been raised, no such inscription would ever 
have been written, and that grim irony would not 
have marred the greatness of Westminster Abbey, 
but for the critical act, the crucial conduct and the 
incorruptible honor of him whose name is upon 
every lip and in every heart here to-day. 

The minute details of the story and the life that 
are brought to mind by the ceremonies of this day 
will be wrought out by another and more competent 
hand. The expression of the thoughts and emotions 
suggested by the accepted facts connected with the 
memorable event of September 23, 1780, and a mere 
outline of the occurrence, are more appropriately 
within the province of the duty assigned to me. In 
the contemplation of the performance of that duty 
I am sustained, buoyed and strengthened by a belief 
in the leniency of judgment and the charitable con- 
sideration of those whom I address. 

To us, living when the nation's life has spanned 
a century, when her greatness and her power are 
recognized in every clime and uj^on every sea, when 
the rich blessings of civil and religious liberty 
accompany every heart-throb and every breath — to 
us the page that records the fidelity and the trans 
cendent honor of David Williams, John Paulding 
and Isaac Van Wart, is serried with lines of the 
deepest interest, and glorious with letters that can 
never fade. 



14 

We open tu-day the book that perpetuates the 
history of revolutioiiaiy times, that tells how our 
country was baptized with tire and blood; how, 
through toils, and labors, and sacrifices, and sor- 
rows, and prayers, this last hope of republicanism 
arose ; and we know that the '' red rain of her 
slauo-htered sires has but watered the earth foi- tlie 
harvest of their gallant sons." AVe turn to the chap- 
ter blackened by the only traitor that disgraced the 
revolutionary period, to find that his treachery was 
defeated and the infant nation saved by the provi- 
dential presence and the memorable act of him to 
whom we this day erect with pageant and ^^•ith 
pride this monumental tribute. 

That Andre's was an important Ijut hazardous 
enterprise is now more fully appreciated than even 
when the stirring events of that j^eriod were ])eing 
enacted — nay, than during tht^ first half century of 
the nation's life. The true nature of that enter23rise 
as well, thanks to the unerring adjustment of time, 
has become fixed and certain wherever intelligence 
and judicial fairness prevail over jDassiou or senti- 
mentality. I would not if I could, and certainly I 
could not if I would, mar the charm of that picture 
which the character and personality of Major Andr(^ 
presents. Dissociated from the terrible consequences 
which would have resulted from a successful ter- 
mination of that enterprise, and independent of the 



15 

attempt made in certain quarters in England to cast 
a shade upon tlie spotless character of Washington, 
we cannot contemplate the fate of Andre, without 
emotions of the profoundest pity. Wherever loy- 
alty and valor are respected, wherever steadfastness 
and manly devotion are admired, wherever youth, 
ambition, intelligence and beauty combined, com- 
mand interest and win affection, there will the char- 
acter of Major Andre be cordially and truly appre- 
ciated. But these very qualities of heart and mind 
were the underlying causes of his connection with 
the enterprise. Considered with all the surround- 
ing circumstances, however, I have no hesitation in 
saying that, in comparison with the high noon glory 
that surrounds the distinguished service, lofty firm- 
ness and untarnished honor of our own Nathan 
Hale, the conduct of Andre pales into a glimmering 
twilight. He who by corruption and bribery seeks 
profit and renown, has no place beside him who 
for love of liberty, considers his own single life but 
an insignificant offering upon the altar of his countr}^ 
The method of Andre's death was an inseparable 
accompaniment of the act and of the offense.^ The 
laws of war and of nations have inexorably imposed 
the penalty, and its infamy cannot be lessened in 
the world's estimation by the fact that his brother 
was invested with the honors of knighthood.^ Vat- 
tel, the great expositor of the laws of nations and 



16 

of war, wliile lie recognizes such entei'prises as not 
contrary to the external law of nations, denies that 
they are just and compatible with the laws of a pure 
conscience, and says : " Seducing a subject to betray 
his country ; suborning a traitor to set fire to a 
magazine ; practicing on the fidelity of a governor — 
enticing him, persuading him to deliver up a place, 
is prompting such persons to commit detestable 
crimes. Is it honest to incite our most inveterate 
enemy to be guilty of a crime ? * * * It is a 
different thing merely to accept the offers of a 
traitor, but when we know ourselves able to succeed 
without the assistance of traitors, it is noble to re- 
ject their offers with detestation." 

At this distance of time, then, we view the act of 
Andre with that calmness and repose of judgment 
that does not err, and which is not warped by 

" Titles blown from adulation." 

This is the darker side of the picture essential to 
its completeness; but there are lighter shades to 
attract the eye and warm the heai-t. Let us ex- 
amine them. 

Stand with me upon that historic spot, hard by 
Tarrytown, in the county of Westchester, where the 
dark blow that was aimed at the life of the young 
nation was arrested. There the zealous Andr6 sees 
visions of f utui-e glory and honor, kingliest rewards, 



17 

within liis very grasp. There, as he rides along 
his solitary path beyond the American lines and on 
the very verge of safety, he knows that his heel is 
upon the throat of American freedom and independ- 
ence. Within sight the great artery of trade and 
commerce flows majestic to the sea, unconscious 
that on this hapless morning of September 21, 1780, 
its bosom is vexed by the Vulture laden with the 
fate of nations and of centuries. The oiant moun- 
tains, sentinels of the centuries, stand and see 
the beginning and the tragic ending of the hellish 
plot which includes the destinies of the nation, 
and the sacrifice of the precious life upon which 
those destinies hang. Standing at this point of 
observation, the magnitude of the service of David 
Williams is more fully seen, is more fully compre- 
hended. In the rusty garb of a reduced gentle- 
man the solitary horseman, as he approaches, is 
now the central figure of our view. And who is 
he ? Major John Andre, adjutant-general of the 
British forces in America. He has left the " Mer- 
curies reclining upon bales of goods, and the Genii 
playing with pens, ink and paper." Mercantile 
glories crowd no longer upon his fancy. An " im- 
pertinent consciousness " has whispered in his ear 
that he is not of the right stuff for a merchant, and 
the picture of his beautiful and beloved Honora has 
lost the talismanic power to lighten toil and inspire 



18 

industry.* Accomplished in the lighter graces of 
music, poetry and painting, graceful and cultured 
in literary expression, fired with a zeal for glory : 

" Yearning lor the large excitement 

that the coming years would yield, 
Eager-hearted as a boy, 

•when first he leaves his father's field," 

he has turned his glowing nature toward the pro- 
fession of his heart. In the words of his biographer, 
few men were more capable than he of winning a 
soldier's reward. A prisoner at the sun-ender of 
St. Johns, we see him clinging to the picture his 
own hand had painted of the loved Honora ; pro- 
moted for merit and. fidelity to a position far above 
his years and experience, winning the confidence 
and affection of his chief, Sir Henry Clinton, he is 
now commissioned for a service of which the Kino- 
of England did not hesitate to say that " the public 
never can be compensated for the vast advantages 
which must have followed from the success of his 
plan." 

Up to that critical moment, nine o'clock on the 
morning of the 23d of September, there had been 
no special lack of discretion on Andre's part. He 
had been borne along by fates that were propitious, 
so far as human ken could see, though in fact perils 
were approaching from sources called accidental, 
perils which to him were entirely unforeseen. For 



19 

more tlian a year lie liad, without exposure or sus- 
picion, conducted a clandestine correspondence with 
the traitor Arnold. The treason had been hidden 
under the phrases of the mercantile profession. 
Arnold, under the feigned name of " Gustavus," had 
communicated much valuable, and often highly im- 
portant information to Andre whom he addressed 
as John Anderson. Sir Henry Clinton, the com- 
mander of the British forces, had soon suspected 
the true rank and person of Gustavus. Several 
attempts at a personal interview had miscarried, 
but the infidelity of Arnold had never been sus- 
pected. He had by importunity at last succeeded 
in obtaining from Washington command of West 
Point without causino; the slio^htest shade of sus- 
picion to cross the sagacious mind of that watchful 
commander. There his plottings were renewed. 
Even the overture which had come in response to 
his communications, and borne by the ominous Vul- 
ture up the Hudson to within fourteen miles of 
Arnold's quarters, near West Point, had been shown 
to W^ashington in the presence of La Fayette, with 
a brazen boldness that extinguished all doubts of 
Arnold's honor. "I had no more suspicion of 
Arnold than I had of myself," said the chief in re- 
lating this. On the 20th, Andre had boarded the 
Vulture in the highest spirits, confident of success. 
The details of that midnight voyage of twelve miles, 



20 

fi'oiii Kiug's Jb'eny to Teller's Point, aud back from 
the Vultui-e to Loug Clove, ai'e known to all. \V ith 
oars carefully mulHeel in sheep-skins, the Hag-boat, 
so called, beneath a serene and clear sky, approached 
in silence the place of meeting, where the arch- 
traitor was hid among the lirs. 

From this point occur a series of trivial circum- 
stances, insignihcant in themselves but yet big with 
fate. The refusal of the boatmen to return to the 
Vulture that night, necessitated the joui'ney to the 
kSmith house, some three or four miles distant, the 
consequent disguise assumed by Andre to escape 
detection during the return by land, and as well 
the possession of the papers found under Andre's 
stockings, which led his captors to the knowledge 
of his true character. Without that disguise and 
without those papers, while the conspiracy might 
not have been defeated, the life of Andre would 
have been saved. But the memorable act of Col. 
Livingston is still muie remai'kable. At day-break, 
on the morniuL'- of the 22d, the Vulture still lin^'ered 
with impudent audacit}' in the vicinity of the 
American fortihcations. Her presence had so out- 
raged the spirit of Livingston and the troops that 
he had applied, but without success, to Arnold for 
two heavy guns. Nothing daunted by the treason- 
able refusal of Arnold, he had carried a four-pounder 
to Gallows Point, a lesser promontory of Tellers, and 



21 

witli but a scant supply of powder, lie commenced 
so active a cannonading upon lier tliat slie was 
obliged to drop down tlie river beyond range.^ In 
this manner all means of access to her by water 
was cut oft' from Andre. But for the American 
grit and perseverance of Livingston, Andre Avould 
doubtless have found some means of again boarding 
the Vultui'e, carrying with him the instruments for 
the destruction of West Point and her dependencies. 
Upon such apparently trivial and accidental inci- 
dents does the fate of nations frequently depend. 

From the window of Smith's house Andre saw 
with impatience the Vulture withdraw, but he knew 
not that she carried with her all his hopes of future 
glory and renown. All that morning after Arnold's 
departure, which occuri-ed at ten o'clock, he chafed 
with impatience to depart. But the jealous, prying, 
gossip-loving guide, in whose care Andre had been 
left, proved too timid, weak and procrastinating for 
the part assigned him. Toward the last of that 
ill-omened Friday, the return was begun, with 
Andre's spirits sunk deep in gloom and sadness. 
And well might they be. The bargain had been 
made by which, for gold, an ofticer, high in the 
esteem of Washington, had sold his birth-right and 
his honor. Durina; that lono; nio-ht he had been 
breathing the foul atmosphere where treason was 
hatched, had been looking into a face wrinkled 



22 

with perfidy, into the blood-shot eyes of a debauched 
and worthless traitor. And he, the soul of honor, 
" the pet of the British army," had been bartering 
with devilish coolness for the soul of a fellow-man. 
Involved in that midnio-ht conference were the lives 
of men ^vho had never done him injury, and the 
happiness of innocent women and children who 
had never crossed his path. He, the hero, who had 
been fired by a desire to win renown by heroic 
bravery and distinguished service for his country, 
was skulking inside the enemy's lines like a common 
thief in diguise, the companion of a petty tool and 
his neoTo, and with his stockinsfs stuffed with an 
ill-gotten booty, bought with the price of another's 
dishonor.^ Is it any wonder that his mind settled 
into gloomy forebodings ? 

He crossed Kings's Ferry at the northern ex- 
tremity of Haverstraw bay and took his way, under 
the dictation of his over-cautious companion, north- 
ward, to disarm suspicion. Here another trivial 
circumstance interposed itself with unerring fatality. 
Smith, the willing tool of Arnold, insisted upon re- 
maining over night on the way. Fatal error ! In 
the darkness and silence of that night, there ^vere 
hidden forces at work, which would block the mor- 
row's path with a wall more impregnable than Fort 
Putnam. The honor and incorruptibility of David 
Williams was a part of its masonry. 



23 

All night the restless Andre tossed upon an un- 
easy bed, side by side with the miserable creature 
whose easy virtue had yielded to the persuasions of 
Arnold. Is it wonderful that both should have 
been robbed of sleep ? Is it strange that at daylight 
and without breakfast they should hasten on in the 
path that was to lead Andre to the feet of his 
sovereign, to receive a grateful country's homage and 
reward ? 

And now we approach the place and the act in 
commemoration of which, by the tardy favor and 
justice of our State, we are assembled here to day. 

The three captors of Major Andre, whose names 
have become renowned, would in all likelihood have 
remained unknow^n to future generations, had Smith, 
as he agreed, accompanied Andre to White Plains, 
below Tarry town. But yielding to his pusillanimous 
fears, he refused to go further than Pines Bridge. 

From this point, then, our solitary horseman ap- 
proaches the place where we stand. To the west 
of the road was the river ; to the east, the Green- 
burgh Hills, in whose bosom lies the world-renowned 
vale of Sleepy Hollow, with its old church founded 
by the Philipse family, and the ancient bell wdth 
its legend, Deuspro nobis, quis contra nos. In front 
of him as he passes, a few rough logs laid side by 
side, furnish a passage over a rivulet, which rises in 
the neighboring swamp and finds its way westward 



24 

into those broad waters of llie HikIsuu kuown as 
the Tappaan Zee. 

Here on the south and west side of the path, con- 
cealed among the bushes, are David Williains, tlie 
eldest of the party (he being about twenty-two 
years old), Jolin Paulding and Isaac Van Wai't, 
yeomen. Not freeholders under the rank of gen- 
tlemen, but American citizens of humble birth, Uvo 
of whom had already risked their lives in the ser- 
vice of their country and in the cause of the colonies, 
against whom the breath of slander from sentimental 
or compassionate lips, liad not yet breathed a shade 
of suspicion ; representatives of that " Peasant 
Patriotism of America — the conquering power of 
the revolution — the essential element then, as no^v, 
and evermore, of American greatness and American 
freedom ! " 

Springing to their feet, with presented muskets, 
they bid the strano;er stand and announce his destin- 
ation. Surely the darling of the British army, wlio, 
by sagacity, prudence and bravery, has been ele- 
vated to the rank of adjutant-general of the British 
forces in America, is possessed of sufficient caution 
to disarm this bristling^ trio ! Not so. Althousjh 
armed with Arnold's pass to guard him against 
the only real enemies he has cause to fear, and 
which has already put to sleep the awakened 
suspicions of the wary Captain Boyd, some over- 



25 

ruling Providence leads him to make that fatal 
answer, " My lads, I hope you belong to our 
party." The reply comes quick, "What party is 
that ? " " The lower party," he answered. " We do," 
is the reply. " Thank God, I am once more among 
friends," he cried, deceived by the rude simplicity 
of the men, and recoo-nizino- a British militarv coat 
upon Paulding's back, a coat in which (in lieu of 
his own, of which he had been despoiled) Paulding 
had escaped from the enemy, in whose hands he had 
fallen some five or six days before the capture of 
Andre. " I am glad to see you, I am a British 
officer ; I have been up in the country on particular 
business, and I hope you won't detain me a minute,'' 
confidently continued Andre. 

The long agony was over ! That mine which 
had been set for the overthrow of the citadel of 
American freedom and independence, whose train 
it had taken months to lay, was now exposed and 
harmless, unless 

" Tlie jiugliug of tlie guinea 
That helps the hurt that houor feels." 

can successfidly assail the virtue of AVilliams, Van 
Wart and Paulding. This vast assemblage, these 
ceremonies, the projected monument over the re- 
mains of David Williams, but above all that waving 
symbol of the power and greatness of this nation, 

tell with unmistakable and an answerable emphasis 
4 



26 

of the incorruptible integrity of these simple rustic 
men. 

The State of New York has honored herself by- 
making the appropriation necessary to commence 
this monument over the remains of the only one of 
that immortal three, Avhose grave remains to this 
day unhonored. In 1827 the city of New York 
erected a monument over the remains of Paulding 
near Peekskill, bearing this significant inscription : 

" On the morning of the 23d of September, 
1780, accompanied by two young farmers of the 
COUNTY OF Westchester (whose names will one 

DAY BE recorded ON THEIR OWN DESERVED MONU- 
MENTS) HE INTERCEPTED THE BrITISH SPY AnDRE. 

Poor himself, he disdained to acquire wealth by 

THE sacrifice OF HIS COUNTRY. REJECTING THE 
TEMPTATION OF GREAT REWARDS, HE CONVEYED HIS 
PP.ISONER TO THE AMERICAN CAMP ; AND BY THIS ACT 
OF NOBLE SELF-DENIAL THE TREASON OF ArNOLD WAS 
DETECTED, THE DESIGNS OF THE ENEMY BAFFLED, WeST 

Point and the American army saved, and these 
United States, now, by the Grace of God, Free 
AND Independent, rescued from most imminent 

PERIL." 

At Greenburgh, near Tarrytown, on the spot 
where the remains of Isaac Van Wart lie buried, the 
citizens of the vicinity erected, in 1829, a suitable 



27 

monument, witli the following inscription engraven 
thereon : 

"Fidelity. Ox the 23d of September, 1780, 
Isaac Van Wart, accompanied by John Paulding 
AND David Williams, all farmers of the county of 
Westchester, intercepted Major Andre on his 
return from the American lines in the charac- 
ter OF A SPY ; AND, NOTWITHSTANDING THE LARGE 
BRIBES OFFERED THEM FOR HIS RELEASE, NOBLY DIS- 
DAINED TO SACRIFICE THEIR COUNTRY FOR GOLD, SE- 
CURED AND CARRIED HIM TO THE COMMANDING OFFICER 
OF THE DISTRICT, WHEREBY THE DANGEROUS AND 
TRAITOROUS CONSPIRACY OF xIrNOLD WAS BROUGHT TO 
LIGHT, THE INSIDIOUS DESIGNS OF THE ENEMY BAFFLED, 

THE American army saved, and our beloved coun- 
try FREE.'" 

On the memorable site where the capture occurred, 
the young men of Westchester county, in 1853, 
built a cenotaph in honor of the captors. How 
appropriate, then, that in this beautiful valley and 
in this' county, where the survivor of the three 
lived for twenty-six years, and where he died and 
was buried, there should rise an enduring mark of 
the gratitude and appreciation of this people ! 

It does not become the time nor the occasion to 
enter upon any extended discussion of the mooted 
questions surrounding the purposes and motives of 



28 

Andre's captors. It is too late a day to reverse the 
iudo-ineiit of Georo-e Wasliinortou aud Alexander 
Hamilton, of Congress and the Legislature of this 
State, all pronounced at the time. Besides the uni- 
ted testimony of a host of their neighbors and ac- 
quaintances, the sworn statements of Paulding and 
Van Wart, and the solemn asseverations of Williams 
seven months before his death in 1831,^ all unite in 
bearing down, with an unanswerable weight of tes- 
timony, the eleventh-hour statement of Col. Tall- 
madge thirty-seven years after the capture.® To all 
this we may add the critical analysis, by Henry J. 
Raymond, of the whole testimony bearing on the 
subject.^ That acute publicist dismissed the slander 
to the reprobation it deserves, and the almost univer- 
sal judgment of the American people confirms the 
verdict. For myself, I may be permitted to add, 
that in my judgment, when examined with faii^ness, 
and tested by the rules of common sense and com- 
mon justice, every candid mind must inevitably 
conclude that the overwhelming balance of proof is 
upon the side of the incorruptible honesty and purity 
of their motives. Nothing more reliable than rumor 
and suspicion arising from statements made solely 
by Andre, stand upon the other side, statements, it 
must never be forgotten, which sprang from a heart 
sorely dejected, chagrined and mortified by his own 
lack of common prudence; made, too, at a time 



29 

when his mind, sunk beneath a weight of woe 
almost incalculable, was seeking for relief in the 
contemplation of what might have been. It is our 
duty to guard the reputation of these humble patri- 
ots against this misty testimony rising out of such a 
cauldron of self-interest. It must always be borne 
in mind that the British would not concede that true 
virtue was a feature of character belonging to Ameri- 
cans ; and Andre, fresh from a field where he had 
witnessed the debased character of a hio-h officer, was 
in no condition of mind to stem the tide of opinion 
that flowed within the English lines. The virtue 
of these men, under such circumstances, could not 
be, and evidently was not comprehended. In the 
words of Lt.-Col. Fleury, written from Newport, 
on the 5th of October, 1 870 : " How great, compared 
to Arnold, are those peasants who refused the bribe 
of Andre. Let this be remembered in favor of 
the poor." 

I may be permitted to express the hope, that 
somewhere upon this projected monument to David 
Williams will appear these notable words of Wash- 
ington in his letter to the President of Congress : 
" The party that took Major Andre ^" * acted 
in such a manner as does them the highest honor, 
and proves them to be men of great virtue, ^ * 
their conduct gives them a just claim to the thanks 
of their country." 



30 

Perhaps the true nature of this conduct is more 
eh:)quently and luminously told in the words of 
Alexander Hamilton, in the Laurens letter, where 
he says : " Arnold's conduct and that of the captors 
of Andr6, form a striking contrast. He tempted 
them with the offer of his watch, his horse and any 
sum of money that they should name. They re- 
jected his offer with indignation, and the gold that 
could seduce a man, high in the esteem and confi- 
dence of his country, who had the remembrance of 
past exploits, the motives of present reputation and 
future glory to prop his integrity, had no charms 
for these simple peasants leaning on their virtue 
and an honest sense of their duty. AVhile Arnold 
is handed down ^^vith execration, posterity will re- 
peat with reverence the names of Van Wart, Pauld- 
ing and Williams ! " 

I owe it to the occasion, to you and to myself, to 
present some considerations in support of the con- 
stantly recurring thought, throughout this discourse, 
of the grave importance of Arnold's plot. I have 
already alluded to the estimate of its advantages to 
the British government pronounced by King George 
the Third. From the abundant materials furnished 
by those in the English service at the time, I will 
only add the following from the memoirs of Sir 
Henry Clinton, commander of the British forces in 
New York. In speaking of the arrest of Andre, he 



31 

says : " I was exceedingly shocked, as may be sup- 
posed, by this very unexpected accident, which not 
only ruined a most important project, which had all 
the appearance of being in a happy train of success, 
but involved in danger and distress a confidential 
friend for whom I had deservedly the warmest 
esteem." 

Creasy, in his '' Decisive Battles of theWorld ", has 
succinctly described the great and pivotal victory of 
the Americans at Saratoga, on the Yth of October, 
1777, He has conclusively shown the plan of op 
erations which the English attempted in that year, 
and which the battle of Saratoga defeated. Tlie 
English had a considerable force in Canada, which 
had been re-enforced for the purpose of striking a 
vigorous and crushing blow against the Colonies. 
It was intended that the force thus collected should 
march southward by the line of the lakes and thence 
along the banks of the Hudson river. The British 
army in New York was to make a simultaneous 
movement northward up the line of the Hudson, 
and the two expeditions were to meet at Albany. 
In this manner all communications between the 
Colonial army in New England, and the principal 
army under Washington, which was watching over 
Pennsylvania and the South, would be cut off. The 
army from Canada was under command of Bur- 
goyne, and that in New York under Sir Henry Clin- 



32 

tun. The plan was ably formed, and was defeated 
only by the consummate skill of Gen. Gates, and the 
unprecedented bravery of his men at Saratoga, aided 
by the dehi}^ caused by the fortifications on the 
lower Hudson, the key of which was West Point, 
which fortification hindered the prompt co-operation 
of Sir Henry Clinton with Burgoyne. Clinton, in 
fact, reached Kingston, where, hearing of Bur- 
goyne's surrender, he burned the place and returned 
to New York. 

What the capture of West Point would have been 
to the British will be more fully appreciated by an 
illustration familiar to all. It will be remembered 
how the country was stirred to its very centre, on 
the 4tli of July, 1863, by tbe glorious tidings that 
Vicksburg had fallen, and that "the great Missis- 
sippi swept unvexed to the sea." What that meant 
was soon known. Surrounded, like West Point, 
with fortifications, redoubts and bastioned forts, it 
held within its iron grasp the control of the great 
Mississippi. When it fell, that great artery through 
which ran the life-blood of the Southern Confeder- 
acy was absolutely within the power of the Federal 
army. The Rebellion had been cut in twain. In 
the lano-uasre of Sherman, " the reduction of Vicks- 
burg made the destruction of the Rebellion certain." 
What Vicksburg and her dependencies were to the 



33 

Mississippi in 1863, West Point and her dependen- 
cies were to the Hudson in 1780. 

What had been lost at Saratoga by open force, 
would have been regained, had West Point and 
its dependencies fallen by means of the secret 
plottings of Arnold. "This was the great object 
of British and American solicitude," says Irving, in 
speaking of West Point, " on the possession of which 
was supposed by many to hinge the fortunes of the 
war." And again he says, " the immediate result 
of this surrender, it was anticipated, would be the 
defeat of the combined attempt upon New York, 
and its ultimate effect mig-ht be the dismemberment 
of the Union and the dislocation of the Avhole 
American scheme of warfare." From the mass of 
American testimony at hand, the following addi. 
tional proofs are selected : La Fayette wrote to his 
wife, October 8th : " A frightful conspiracy has 
been planned by the celebrated Arnold ; he sold to 
the Eno-lish the fort of West Point which was under 
his command, and consequently the whole naviga- 
tion of the North river." 

General Greene issued a general order (>n the 
26th of October, from which the following is taken: 

"Treason, of the blackest dye, was yesterday dis- 
covered. General Arnold, who commanded at West 
Point — lost to every sentiment of honor, of pri- 
vate and public obligation — was about to deliver 
5 



34 

up that important [)OSt into tlie hands of the 
enemy. Such an event must have given the Amei-- 
ican cause a deadly wound, if not a fatal stab. 
Happily this treason has been timely discovered to 
prevent the fatal misfortune. The providential 
train of circumstances which led to it, affords the 
most convincing proof that the liberties of America 
are the object of divine protection. At the same 
time, though the treason is to be regretted, the gen- 
eral cannot help congratulating the army on the 
happy discovery. Our enemies, despairing of carry- 
ing their point by force, are practicing every base 
art to effect by bribery and corruption, what they 
cannot accomplish in a manly way. Great honor 
is due to the American army that this is the first 
instance of the kind, where many were to be ex- 
pected from the nature of the dispute ; and nothing 
is so bright an ornament in the character of the 
American soldiers, as their having been proof against 
all the arts and seductions of an insidious enemy. 
"' * * His Excellency the commander-in-chief 
has arrived at West Point from Harcford, and is no 
doubt taking proper measures to unravel fully so 
hellish a plot." 

It must be borne in mind, that had the " hellish 
plot " succeeded, it would have involved the cap- 
tivity of Washington himself. The following re- 
markable letter of Governor Wm. Livingston to 



35 

General Washington so entirely expresses the emo- 
tions of the hour, that it is inserted in full : 

Teenton, Ith October, 1780. 
Dear Sir — I most heartily congratulate your 
Excellency on the timely discovery of General Ar 
nold's treasonable plot to captivate your person and 
deliver up West Point to the enemy, of which the 
loss of the former, had his infernal machinations 
succeeded, would have been more regretted by 
America than of the latter. The remarkable disposi- 
tion of Providence to frustrate the diabolical con- 
spiracy, will inspire every virtuous American with 
sincere gratitude to the Great Arbiter of all events; 
and I hope that no true Whig among us will ever 
forget the memorable era when we were, by the 
peculiar guardianship of Heaven, rescued from the 
xery brink of destruction. 

" I have the honor to be 

your very obedient servant, 

" William Livustgston." 

Is it any wonder, then, that with pomp and cir- 
cumstance, and with grateful hearts, we assemble 
to perpetuate with enduring granite, here under the 
broad sky, and upon the free acres of our beloved 
country, that transcendent act and that renowned 
virtue of these captors of Andr6 ! 

Though neglected, he whose ashes lie buried here. 



36 

was not absolutely forgotten by his coimtiy, and 
it is proper tliat allusion sluaild be made to the 
re^vards which a grateful country has bestowed upon 
him. 

By authority of congress, in 1780, a silver medal 
bearing the inscription of " Fidelity " and the legend 
" Viucit Amor Patrice'''' was presented to each of 
the captors, and at the same time an annuity was 
authorized to be paid to each of $200 in specie. In 
addition, congress granted to each the privilege of 
locating any confiscated lands in the county of 
Westchester to the amount of $1,250, or of receiv- 
ine- that sum in cash. The Lecj-islature of the State 
of New York granted to each a farm, reciting in 
the act as a consideration "their virtue in refus- 
ing a large sum offered to them by Major Andre as 
a bribe to permit him to escape." In the fall of 
1830 the corporation of the city of New York in- 
vited David Williams (the survivor of the three), 
by special messenger to be present in that city at 
the celebration of the French Revolution. He was 
drawn, with other heroes of '76, in a carriage at the 
head of the procession and attracted much attention. 
He was presented with a silver cup at one of the 
schools and at another with a silver headed cane, the 
stem of which ^vas made out of a chevaux de frise 
used near West Point during the revolution. His 
widow obtained a continuation of his pension, which 



37 

ceased at the time of liis death. Forty-five years 
ago, amid a concourse of honoring friends and coun- 
trymen, he was buried at Livingstonville, in this 
county. His remains have been removed by consent 
of his descendants to this place. 

Here in this locality, made memorable by the 
ruinous invasion of Johnson about the time when 
the events we have described were transpiring near 
Tarrytown — here near the place where the " peeled 
log " of the enemy ^° left its mark upon the old Dutch 
church — here where brave men and braver women 
stood with undaunted courage in the midst of con- 
flagration, ruin and death — where the red men 
showed no mercy, and where patriots never flinched 
— let his ashes lie. Not in the midst of royal sar- 
cophagi or carved shrines, but surrounded by the 
veneration of untold o-enerations of freeborn Amer- 
leans ; not wholly unbonored, as heretofore, but 
graced and adorned with a permanent token of our 
remembrance and esteem. For at last, thanks to 
the interest and sense of justice of many good men 
and true, the legislature of the State, by making an 
appropriation for the monument, has removed the 
stain which the neglect of forty-five years had 
fastened upon as. 

Standing where we do to day, as it were upon 
the apex of a pyramid, we look back over the way 
the nation has so grandly trod. In the beginning 



38 

we perceive the toiliug multitudes, who, regardless 
of personal sacrifice, conscious of their own recti- 
tude and relying upon the favor of God, wrought 
out the greatest empire of fi-eedom the world has 
ever seen. In that great work, so full of the richest 
blessings for us and for oui' children, let it be remem- 
bered, that the part performed by the humblest, 
was often as important as that of the greatest. The 
cause of the colonies was near to the hearts of the 
people. That was the security of the nation then, 
and it cannot endure without it now. 

" Oh ! if the young men of our time would glow 
with a healthy pride of race ; if they would kindle 
with the inspiration of patriotism ; if they would 
find annals wealthier in enduring lesson, and bright 
with the radiance of a holier virtue than ever Rome 
embraced or Sparta knew, let them read their own 
land's history." Then may we be hopeful for the 
future. Then may the story we rehearse here to- 
day be borne to future ages along with the growing 
grandeur of this mighty nation which was built upon 
the devotion, and will be sustained by the bright 
example of the E-evolutionary Patriots. 



APPENDIX. 



Note 1. 



When Andre's remains were removed in 1821, from their burial place 
in this country, a young peach tree was found growing out of the 

grave. 

Note 2. 

Remarks of Chief Justice Marshall: '^ Andre having been unques- 
tionably a spy, and his sentence consequently just ; and the plot in which 
he had engaged having threatened consequences the most fatal to 
America, his execution, had he been an ordinary person, would cer- 
tainly have been viewed with cold indifference : but he was not an 
ordinary person. It would seem that art had been successfully 
employed in the embellishment of those fascinating qualities which 
nature had profusely lavished on him. 

"Possessed of a fine person and an excellent understanding, he had 
united the polish of a court, and the refinements given by education, 
to the heroism of a soldier." ******* 

Note 3. 

A brother of Andre's was knighted by the king of England to 
remove the stain which was supposed to attach to the family on 
account of the mode of Andre's death. 

Note 4. 

Letter from Mr. Andre to Miss Seward. Sargent's Life of Andre, 
page 21 : 

"London, October 19, 1769. 

" From the midst of books, papers, bills, and other implements of 
gain, let me lift up my drowsy head awhile to converse with dear 
Julia. And first, as I know she has a fervent wish to see me a quill- 
driver, I must tell her, that I begin, as people are wont to do, to look 
upon my future profession with great partiality. I no longer see it in so 
disadvantageous a light. Instead of figuring a merchant as a middle- 
aged man, with a bob-wig, a rough beard, in snuff-colored clothes, 
grasping a guinea in his red hand, I conceive a comely young man, 



4(1 

with a toleiable pig-tail, ^vit;ltling a pen with all the noble Gerceness of 
the Duke of Marlborough brandishing a truncheon upon a sign-post, 
surrounded with types and emblems, and canopied with cornuco- 
pias that disembogue their stores upon his head; Mercuries reclined 
upon bales of goods; Genii playing with pens, ink and paper; while, 
in perspective, his gorgeous vessels, '" Launched on the bosom of the 
silver Thames," are wafting to distant lands the produce of this com- 
mercial nation. Thus all the mercantile glories crowd on my fancy 
emblazoned in the most refulgent coloring of an ardent imaguiation. 
Borne on her soaring pinions I wing my flight to the time when 
Heaven shall have crowned my labors with success and opulence. I 
see sumptuous palaces rising to receive me ; I see orphans and widows 
and painters and fiddlers, and poets and builders, protected and encour- 
ao-ed; and when the fabric is pretty nearly finished by my .shattered 
pericranium, I cast my eyes around and find John Andre by a small 
coal-fire, in a gloomy compting-house in Warnford Court, nothing so 
little as what he has been making himself, and, in all probability, never 
to be much more than he is at present. But ohl my dear Honora! — 
it is for thy sake only I wish for wealth. You say she was somewhat 
better at the time you wrote last. I must flatter myself that she will 
soon be without any remains of this threatening disease. It is seven 
o'clock • you and Honora, with two or three more select friends, are now 
probably encircling your dressing-room fireplace. What would I not 
give to enlarge that circle! The idea of a clean hearth, and a snug 
circle round it, formed by a few select friends, transport me. You 
seem combined together against the inclemency of the weather, the 
hurry, bustle, ceremony, censoriousness and envy of the world. The 
purity, the warmth, the kindly influence of fire — to all for whom it is 
kindled — is a good emblem of the friendship of such amiable minds 
as Julia's and her Honora's. Since I cannot be there in reality, pray 
imagine me with you; admit me to your conversationes — think how 
I wish for the blessing of joining them! and be persuaded that I take 
part in all your pleasures, in the dear hope, that e-e very long, your 
blazing hearth will burn again for me. Pray keep me a place ; let the 
poker, tongs or shovel, represent me. But you have Dutch tiles, which 
are infinitely better ; so let Moses, or Aaron, or Balaam's ass be my 
representative. But time calls me to Clapton. I quit you abruptly till 
to-morrow, when, if I do not tear the nonsense I have been writing, 
I may, perhaps, increase its quantity. Signora Cynthia is in clouded 
majesty. Silvered with her beams, I am about to jog to Clapton upon 
my own .stumps; musing as I homeward plod my way — ah! need I 
name the subject of my contemplations?" 



41 

Note 5. 

The important consequence of this cannonade was not understood, 
when the following note was written by Colonel Lamb : 

West Point, 20 September^ 1780. 
Sir — ^I have sent the ammunition you requested, but, at the same 
time, I wish there may not be a wanton waste of it, as we have little 
to spare. Firing at a ship with a four-pounder is, in my opinion, a 
waste of powder, as the damage she will sustain is not equal to the 
expense. Whenever applications are made for ammunition, they must 
be made through the commanding officer of artillery, at the post where 
it is wanted. 

I am, sir, yours, etc., 

JOHN LAMB. 
CoL. Livingston. 

Note 6. 
Papers found on Major Andre's person when captured. 

I. 

[Pass for the use of Andre. In Arnold's handwriting.] 

Headquarters, Robinson's House, 

Sepfr 22d, 1780. 

Permit Mr. John Anderson to pass the guards to White Plains, or 
below if he chuses, he being on public business by my direction. 

B. ARNOLD, iM GenH. 
(Indorsed: Arnold to John Anderson — Pass. 22 Sept., 1780.) 

II. 

[Artillery Orders.] 

{Disposition of the Garrison at West Point, in case of an alarm. — In 

Arnolds handwritiyig.') 

Wt. Point, Sept. 5th, 1780. 
Artillery Orders : 

The following disposition of the corps is to take place, in case of an 
alarm : 

Capt. Dannils, with his company, at Fort Putnam, and to detach an 
officer with 12 men to Wylly's Redoubt; a non-commissioned officer, 
with 3 men, to Webb's Redoubt, and a like number to Redoubt No. 4; 
Captain Thomas' company to repair to Fort Arnold ; Captain Simmons 
and company to remain at the North and South Redoubts, at the east 
side of the river, until further orders. 

6 



4-2 

Lieut. Barber, with 20 men of Capt. Jackson's company, will repair 
to Constitution Islaijd ; the remainder of the company, with Lieut 
Masons, will repair to Arnold. 

Capt. Lieut. George and Lieut. Blake, with 20 men of Capt. Tread- 
wills' company, will lepair to Redoubt No. 1 and 2; the remainder of 
the company will be sent to Fort Arnold. 

Lieut. Jones's company, with Lieut. Fisk, to repair to the South Bat- 
tery. The Chain Battery, Sherburn's Redoubt, and the Brass Field- 
pieces will be manned from Fort Arnold, as occasion may require. 

The Commissary and Conductor of Military stores will, in turn, wait 
upon the Commanding Officer of Artillery for orders. 

The Artificers in the Garrison (agreeable to former orders) will 
repair to Fort Arnold, and there receive further orders from the Com- 
manding Officer of Artillery, J. Bauman, Major Comm't Artillery. 

(Indorsed: Artillery Orders, Sept. 5, 1780.) 

in. 

{Estimate of the Strength of the Garrison, Sept. 1780. — In Arnold's 
handwriting.) 

Estimate of the forces at Wt. Point and its dependencies, Sept. 13th, 
1780: 
A Brigade of Massachusetts Militia and two Regiments of Rank 

and File, New Hampsliire, inclusive of 166 Batteaux Men at 

Verplanks and Stoney Points 992 

On command and extra service at Fish Kills, New Windsor, &c., 

&c., who may be called in occasionally . . 852 

Three Regiments of Connecticut Militia, under the command of 

Colonel Wells, on the lines near No Castle 488 

A Detachment of New York Levies on the lines 115 



Militia 2,447 

Colonel Lamb's Regiment 167 

Colonel Livingston, at Verplank and Stoney Pts 80 

Continental 247 

Colonel Sheldon's Dragoons on the lines, about one-half Mounted, 142 
Batteaux Men and Artificers 250 



Total 3,086 



(Indorsed : Estimate of the Force at West Point and its depend- 
encies, Sept., 1780.) 



43 



lY. 

{Estimate of the Force necessary to completely Man the Works. — In 
ArnoWs hundwriting .) 

Estimate of the number of men necessary to Man the Works at 
Wst. Point and in the Vicinity: 

Fort Arnold 620 

" Putnam 450 

" Wyllys 140 

" Webb 140 

Redoubt No. 1 150 

2 150 

3 

4 



120 

100 

130 

110 

78 

North Redoubt 120 

South Redoubt 130 

Total 2,438 



VILLEPAUCHB, Engineer. 

N. B. — The Artillery men are not included in the above estimate. 
(Indorsed : Estimate of Men to Man the Works at West Point, &c., 
Sept., 1780.) 



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45 



VI. 



{Remarks on Worlts at West Point, September, 1780 — In Arnold's 
handwritma .) 

Sepr, 1780. 

Fort Arnold is built of dry fascines and wood, is in a ruinous condi- 
tion, incomplete, and subject to take fire from shells or carcasses. 

Fort Putnam, stone wanting great repairs; the wall on the east side 
broke down, and rebuilding from the foundation at the west and south 
side ; have been a chevaus de frise on the west side broke in many 
places. The east side open, two Bomb Proofs and Provision Magazine 
in the Fort, and slight wooden Barrack. A commanding piece of 
ground, 500 yards west between the Fort and No. 4 — or Rocky Hill. 

Fort Webb, built of fascines and wood; a slight work, very dry and 
liable to be set on fire, as the approaches are very easy, without defen- 
ses, save a slight abattis. 

Fort Wylly's. built of stone ; five feet high, the work above plank 
filled Avith earth; the stone work 15 feet; the earth nine feet thick. 
No Bomb Proofs ; the Batteries without the Fort. 

Redoubt No. 1. On the south side; wood nine feet; the west, 
north and east sides four feet thick; no cannon in the works ; a slight 
and single abattis ; no ditch or picket ; cannon on two Batteries; no 
Bomb Proofs. 

Redoubt No. 2. The same as No. 1. No Bomb Proofs. 

Redoubt No. 3. A slight woodwork three feet thick : very dry; no 
Bomb Proofs; a single abattis; the work easily set on fire; no cannon. 

Redoubt No. 4. A wooden work about ten feet high and four or five 
feet thick ; the west side faced with a stone w^all eight feet high and 
four feet thick; no Bomb Proof; two six-pounders ; a slight abattis ; 
a commanding piece of ground 500 yards west. 

The North Redoubt on the east side built of stone, four feet high ; 
above the stone wood filled in with earth ; very dry ; no ditch ; a 
Bomb Proof; three Batteries without the Fort, a poor abattis; a 
rising piece of ground 500 yards south; the approaches under cover to 
within 20 yards; the work easily fired with faggots diptd in pitch, etc. 

South Redoubt much the same as the North ; a commanding piece 
of ground 500 yards due east ; three Batteries without the Fort. 

(Indorsed : Remarks on Works at West Point, a copy to be trans- 
mitted to his Excellency General Washington.) 



46 
VII. 

{Copy of a State of Matters laid before a Council of War, by Gen'l 
Washington, Sept. 6, 1780. — In Arnold's handwriting.) 

At a Council of War, held in Camp, Bergen County, Sept. Gtli, 1780. 

Present — The Commander-in-Chief. 

The Commander-in-Chief states to the Council that, since he had 
the honor of laying before the General Officers, at Morristovvn, the 
6th of June last, a general view of our circumstances, several impor- 
tant events have occurred, v^'hich have materially changed the pros- 
pects of the campaign. 

That the succor expected from France, instead of coming out in 
one body, and producing a national superiority in these seas, has 
been divided into two divisions, the first of which, only consisting of 
seven ships of the line, one forty-four, and three smaller frigates, with 
five thousand land forces, had arrived at Rhode Island. 

That a re-enforcement of six ships of the line from England having 
re-enforced the enemy, had made their Naval Force in these seas 
amount to nine sail of the line, two fifties, two forty-fours, and a num- 
ber of smaller frigates, a force completely superior to that of our allies, 
and which has, in consequence, held them blocked up in the harbor of 
Rhode Island till the 29th ult., at which period tiie British fleet disap- 
peared, and no advice of them has since been received. 

That accounts received by the alliance frigate, which left France in 
July, announces the Second Division to be confined in Brest, with 
several other ships, by a British fleet of thirty-two sail of the line, and 
a fleet of the allies of thirty-six or thirty-eight ships of the line, ready 
to put to sea from Cadiz to relieve the port of Brest. 

The most of the States, in their answers to the requisitions made of 
them, give the strongest assurances of doing every thing in their power 
to furnish the men and supplies required for the expected co-operation. 

The effect of which, however, K.'.s been far short of our expectations, 
for not much above one-third of the levies demanded for the Conti- 
nental Battalions, nor above the same proportion of Militia, have been 
assembled, and the supplies have been so inadequate that there was a 
necessity for dismissing all the Militia, whose immediate services could 
be dispensed with, to lessen our consumption, notwithstanding which 
the troops now in field are severely suffering for want of provisions. 

That the army at this post and in the vicinity, in operating force, 
consists of 10,400 Continental troops and about 400 Militia, besides 
which is a regiment of Continental troops of about 500 at Rhode 
Island, left there for the assistance of our allies, against any attempt of 



47 

the enemy that way ; the two Connecticut State regiments, amount- 
ing to 800, at North Castle. 

That the times of service for which the levies are engaged will expire 
the first of January, which, if not replaced, allowing for the usual 
casualties, will reduce the Continental Army to less than 6,000. 

That since the state to the council above referred to, the enemy have 
brought a detachment of about 3,000 men from Charles Town to New 
York, which makes the present operating force in this quarter between 
ten and eleven thousand men. 

That the enemies' force now in the southern States has not been 
lately ascertained by any distinct accounts, but the General supposes 
it cannot be less than 7,000 (of which about 2,000 are at Savannah) 
in this estimate the diminution by the casualities of the climate is 
supposed to be equal to the increase of force derived from the dis- 
aflfected. That added to the loss of Charles Town and its garrison 
accounts of a recent misfortune are just arrived from Major-General 
Gates, giving advice of a general action which happened on the 16th 
of August, near Campden, in which the army under his command met 
with a total defeat, and, in all probability, the whole of the Continental 
troops, and a considerable part of the Militia would be cut off. 

That the State of Virginia has been sometime exerting itself to raise 
a body of 3,000 troops to serve till the end of December, 1781, but 
how far it has succeeded is not known. 

That -Maryland had resolved to raise 2,000 men, of which a sufficient 
number to compose one battalion, was to have come to this army. 
The remainder to recruit the Maryland line, but in consequence of the 
late advices, an order has been sent to march the whole southward. 

That the enemies' force in Canada, Halifax, St. Augustine and at 
Penobscot, remains much the same as stated in the precedino- Council. 

That there is still reason to believe the Court of France will prose- 
cute its original intention of giving effectual succor to this country, as 
soon as circumstances will permit; and it is hoped the second division 
will certainly arrive in the course of the fall. That a fleet greatly 
superior to that of the enemy in the West Indies, and a formidable 
land force had sailed sometime since from Martinique to make a com- 
bined attack upon the Island of Jamaica, that there is a possibility of 
a re-enforcement from this quarter also, to the fleet of our ally at Rhode 
Island. 

The Commander-in-Chief having thus given the Council a full view 
of our present situation and future prospects, requests the opinion of 
each member, in writing, what plan it will be advisable to pursue; to 
what objects our attention ought to be directed in the course of this 



48 

fall and winter, taking into consideration the alternative of having or 
not having a naval superiority; whether any offensive operations cau 
be immediately undertaken and against what point; what ought to be 
our immediate preparations and dispositions, particularly whether we 
can afford or ought to send any re-enforcements from this army to the 
Southern States, and to what amount; the General requests to be 
fav(M-ed with these opinions by the 10th instant at farthest. 
(Indorsed : Copy of a Council of War held Sept. 6th, 1780.) 

Note 7. 

So long a time has elapsed since the documents here referred to 
were originally published, that they had been very generally forgotten ; 
and as they are important to a correct judgment of the conduct and 
motives of the captors of Andre, on which even Mr. Sparks, with less 
than his scrupulous regard for exact justice, has thrown down un- 
merited distrust, it may not be amiss to reprint them in this connec- 
tion. They were originally published in February and March, 1817, 
immediately after the remarks of Major Tallmadge in Congress. 

Certificate of Inhabitants of Westchester County. 

" We, the subscribers, inhabitants of the county of Westchester, do 
certif}^, that during the Revolutionary war, we were well acquainted 
with Isaac Van Wart, David Williams and John Paulding, who arrested 
Major Andre; and that at no time during the Revolutionary war, roas 
any suspicion entertained by their neighbors or acquaintances, that they 
or either of them held any undue intercourse tvith the enemy. 

"On the contrary, they were tiniversally esteemed, and taken to be 
ardent and faithful in the cause of the country. 

'■ We fiirrther certify, that the said Paulding and Williams are not 
now resident among us, but that Isaac Van Wart is a respectable free- 
holder of the town of Mount Pleasant : that we are well acquainted 
with him; and we do not hesitate to declare our belief, that there is 
not an individual in the county of Westchester, acquainted with Isaac 
Van Wart, who would hesitate to describe him as a man whose integrity 
is as unimpeachable as his veracity is undoubted. In these respects no 
man in the county of Westchester is his superior. 

" Johnathan Gr. Tompkins, aged 31 years. 
*' Jacob Purdy, aged 77 years. 
" John Odell, aged 60 years. 
"John Boyce, aged 72 years. 
" J. Requa, aged 57 years. 



49 

" William Paulding, aged 81 years. 
"John Reqna, aged 54 years. 
" Archer Read, aged 64 years. 
" Greorge Comb, aged 72 years. 
" Gilbert Dean, aged 70 years. 
'' Jonathan Odell, aged 87 years. 
''Cornelius Vantassel, aged 71 years. 
'' Thomas Boyce, aged 71 years. 
" Tunis Lynt, aged 71 years. 
'• Jacobus Dyckman, aged 68 years. 
" William Hammond. 
'' .John Romer." 

^^ Isaac Van Warfs Affidavit. 

" Isaac Van Wart, of the town of Mount Pleasant, in the county of 
Westchester, being duly sworn, doth depose and say that he is one 
of the three persons who arrested Major Andre during the American 
Revolutionary War, and conducted him to the American camp. That 
he, this deponent, together with David Williams and John Paulding, 
had secreted themselves at the side of the highway, for the purpose of 
detecting any person coming from or having unlawful intercourse 
with the enemy, being between the two armies — a service not un- 
common in those times. That this deponent and his companions 
were armed with muskets, and, upon seeing Major Andre approach the 
place where the}' were concealed, they rose and pre-sented their muskets 
at him and required him to stop, which he did. He then asked them 
whether they belonged to his party? and then they asked him which 
was his party ? to which he replied, ' the lower party.' Upon which 
they — deeming a little stratagem, under such circumstances, not only 
jusLiflable, but necessary — gave him to understand that they were of 
his party ; upon which he joyfully declared himself to be a British 
ofScer, and told them that he had been out on very particular business. 
Having ascertained thus much, this deponent and his companions un- 
deceived him as to their characters, declaring themselves Americans, 
and that he must consider him.self their prisoner. Upon this, with 
seeming unconcern, he said he had a pass from G-eneral Arnold, which 
he exhibited, and then insisted on their permitting him to proceed; 
but they told him that, as he had confessed himself to be a British 
officer, they deemed it to be their duty to convey hirn to the American 
camp, and then took him into a wood, a short distance from the high- 
way, in order to guard against being surprised by parties of the enemy, 
who were frequently reconnoitering in that neighborhood, 

7 



60 

That when they had him in the wood they proceeded to search him, 
for the purpose of ascertaining who and what lie was, and found inside 
of his stockings and boots, next to his bare foot, papers, which satis- 
fied them that he was a spy. Major Andr€ now showed them his gold 
watch, and remarked that it was evidence of his being a gentleman, 
and also promised lo make them any reward they might name, if they 
would but permit him to proceed, which they refused. 

He then told them that if they doubted the fulfillment of his promise, 
they might cunceal him in some secret place, and keep him, there until they 
could send to New York and receive their reward. And this deponent 
expressly declares that every ofifer made by Major Andre to them was 
promptly and resolutely refused. And, as for himself, he solemnly declares 
that he had not, and he does most sincerely believe that Paulding and 
Williams had not, any intention of pUindering their prisoner, nor did they 
confer with each other, or even hesitate lohether they should accept his 
promises ; but, on the contrary, they were, in the opinion of this de- 
ponent, governed, like himself, by a deep interest in the cause of the 
country and a strong sense of duty. And this deponent further says 
that he never visited the British camp, nor does he believe or suspect 
that either Paulding or Williams ever did, except that Paulding was 
once, before Andre's capture, .and once afterward, made a prisoner by 
the British, as this deponent has been informed and believes. And 
this deponent for himself expressly denies that he ever held any unlaw- 
ful traffic, or any intercourse whatever, with the enemy. 

And — appealing solemnly to that Omniscient Being at whose tribu- 
nal he must soon appear — he doth expressly declare that all accusa- 
tions, charging him therewith, are utterly untrue. 

ISAAC VAN WART. 
Sworn before me, this 28th ) 
day of January, 1817. \ 

Jacob Radcliffe, Mayor. 

John Paulding's Affidavit. 

John Paulding, of the county of Westchester, one of the persons 
who took Major Andr^, being duly sworn, saith that he was three 
times, during the Revolutionary War, a prisoner with the enemy; the 
first time he was taken at the White Plains, when under the command 
of Captain Requa, and carried to New York and confined in the 
Sugar-House. The second time he was taken near Tarrytown, when 
under the command of Lieutenant Peacock, and confined in the North 
Dutch Church, in New York ; that both these times he escaped, and 



51 

the last of them only four days before the capture of Andre ; that the 
last time he was taken he was wounded and lay in the hospital in 
New York, and was discharged on the arrival of the news of peace 
there; that he and his companions, Van Wart and Williams, amono- 
other articles which they took from Major Andre, were his 
watch, horse, saddle and bridle, and which they retained as prize ; that 
they delivered over Andre, with the papers found on him, to Col. 
Jameson, who commanded on the lines; that shortly thereafter they 
were summoned to appear as witnesses at the headquarters of Greneral 
Washington, at Tappan; that they were at Tappan some days, and 
examined as witnesses before the court-martial on the trial of Smith, 
who brought Andre ashore from on board the sloop of war; that while 
there, Col. William S. Smith redeemed the watch from them for thirty 
guineas; which, and the money received for the horse, saddle and 
bridle, they divided equally among themselves and four other persons, 
who belonged to their party, but when Andre was taken, were about 
half a mile off, keeping a look-out on a hill ; that Andre had no gold or 
silver money with him, but only some Continental bills, to the amount 
of about eighty dollars; that the medals given to him and Van Wart 
and Williams, by Congress, were presented to them by G-eneral Wash" 
ington, when the army was encamped at Verplanck's Point, and that 
they on the occasion dined at his table ; that Williams removed some 
years ago from Westchester county to the northern part of the State, 
but where, partieulaily, the deponent does not know. And the 
deponent, referring to the affidavit of Van Wart, taken on the 28th of 
January last, and which he has read, says that the same is in substance 
true. 

JOHN PAULDING-. 
Sworn before me, this 6th [ 
day of May, 1817. \ 

Charles G-. Van Wyck, 

Master in Chancery. 

Autobiography of David Williams. 
The following biography of David Williams appeared in the Albany 
Daily Advertiser, in January preceding his death, said to have been 
dictated by himself: 

" I was born in Tarrytown, then called Philips' Manor, Westchester 
county. New York, October 21st, 1754. I entered the army in 1775, 
at the age of 21, and was under G-eneral Montgomery at the siege of 
Fort St. Johns, and afterward on board the flat-bottomed boats to 
carry provisions, etc.; served out my time which was six mojiths: 



52 

I then went, listed again in the spring of 177<), and continued 
in the service by difi'erent enlistments, as a New York militiaman, 
until 1779. In 177i''. when in Capt. Acker's company of New 
York militia, at Tarrytown, I asked his permission to take a 
walk in company with William Van Wart, a boy sixteen or seven- 
teen years old ; I proceeded to the cross-roads on Tompkins' ridgi- ; 
stood looking a few moments; saw live men coming, they had arms; 
we jumped over a stone fence and concealed ourselves in a corner of 
it; observed that they were armed with two muskets and three pistols; 
they came so nigh that we recognized two of them, viz. : William 
Underhill and William Mosher, who were tories, and known to be of 
De Lancey's corps ; when they came within proper distance, I said to 
my companion, 'Billy, neck or no joint!' I then said aloud, as if 
speaking to a number, with a view of intimidating them, 'Men, make 
ready f They stopped immediately; I told them to ground their 
arms, which they did ; I then said, ' March away ; ' they did so ; I 
then jumped over the fence, secured their arms, and made them march 
before us to our quarters; I continued in the service until a week or ten 
days before the year 1780. In December, 1779. Captain Daniel Wil- 
liams, who was commander of our company, mounted us on horses, 
and we went to Morrisania, Westchester county. We swept all Mor- 
risania clear; took probably $5,000 worth of property; returned to 
Tarrytown and quartered at Young's house. My feet being frozen, 
my uncle, Martinus Van Wart, took me to his house ; I told Captain 
Williams that the enemy would soon be at Young's, and that if he 
remained there he would be on his way to Morrisania before morning ; 
he paid no attention to my remarks — he did not believe me; but in 
the course of the night a woman came to my uncle's, crying, ' Uncle 
Martinus! Uncle Martinus!' The truth was, the British had sur- 
rounded Young's house, made prisoners of all the company except 
two, and burnt the barn. " Having got well of my frozen feet, on the 
3d of June, 1780, we were all driven from Tarrytown to the upper 
part of Westchester county, in the town of Salem. We belonged to 
no organized company at all ; were under no command, and worked 
for our board or johnny-cake. Isaac Van Wart, who was a cousin of 
mine (the father of Williams and mother of Van Wart were brother 
and sister), Nicholas Storms and myself went to Tarrytown on a 
visit ; we carried our muskets with us, and on our way took a Quaker, 
who said he was going to New York after salt and other things. The 
Quaker was taken before the American authority and acquitted. "In 
July or August a number of persons, of whom I was one, went on a 
visit to our friends in Tarrytown, and while on the way took ten head 



53 

of cattle, which some refugees were driving to New York, anci, on 
examination before the authority, the cattle were restored to their right 
owners, as they pleaded innocence, saying they were stolen from them. 
I then returned to Salem, and worked with a Mr. Benedict for my 
board, until the 22d of September. It was about one o'clock p. m., 
as I was standing in the door with Mr. Benedict's daughter (who 
was afterward my wife), when I saw six men coming; she re 
marked, ' They have got guns.' I jumped over a board fence and met 
them. ' Boys,' said I, ' where are ^''ou going ? ' They answered 
'we are going to Tarrytown.' I then said 'if you will wait until I get 
my gun I will go with you.' The names of the six persons were, Isaac 
Van Wart, John Paulding, William Williams, John Yerks and James 
Homer; the name of the sixth I have forgotten. We proceeded about 
fifteen miles that nigiit, and slept in a hay barrack. In the morning 
we crossed Buttermilk hill, when John Paulding proposed to go to 
Isaac Reed's and get a pack of cards to divert ourselves with. After 
procuring them we went out to Davis' hill, where we separated, leav- 
ing four on the hill and three, viz., Van Wart, Paulding and myself, 
proceeded on the Tarrytown road about one mile and concealed our- 
selves in the bushes on the west side of the road, and commenced play 
ing cards three handed, that is, each one for himself. We had not been 
playing more than an hour, when we heard a horse galloping across a 
bridge but a few yards from us ; which of us spoke I do not remember 
but one of us said, ' there comes a trader going to New York.' We 
stepped out from our concealment and stopped him. 'My lads,' said 
he, 'I hope you belong to our party.' We asked him ' what party ?' 
he replied, 'the lower party.' We told him 'we did.' He then said, 
'I am a British officer, have been up the country on particular business^ 
and would not wish to be detained a minute,' and as a token to con- 
vince us he was a gentleman, he pulled out and showed us his gold 
watch; we then told him we were Americans. 'God bless my soul,' 
said he, ' a man must do any thing these times to get along,' and then 
showed us Arnold's pass. We told him it would not satisfy us without 
searching him. 'My lads,' said he, 'you will bring yourselves into 
trouble.' We answered ' we did not fear it,' and conducted him about 
seventy rods into the woods. My comrades appointed me to search 
him ; commencing with his hat, I searched his person effectually, but 
found nothing until I pulled of his boot, when we discovered that some- 
thing was concealed in his stocking. Paulding caught hold of his foot 
and exclaimed, ' by Gr — d, here it is ! ' I pulled off his stocking, 
and inside of it, next to the sole of his foot, found three half 
sheets of paper inclosed in another half sheet which was indorsed 



54 

' West Point ; ' and on pnlling off the other boot and stocking, 
I found three like papers, inclosed and indorsed as the others. 
On reading them, one of my companions said, ' by G — d, he is a spy ! ' 
We then asked him where he got those papers ? he told us, ' of a man 
at Pine's bridge,' but he said ' he did not know his name.' He offered 
us his gold watch, his horse, saddle, bridle and 100 guineas, if we 
would let him go ; we told him ' no, unless he would inform us where 
he got the papers.' He answered us as before, but increased his offer 
to 1,000 guineas, his horse, etc. ; we told him again we would not let 
him go; he then said, 'gentlemen, I will give you 10,000 guineas' 
[nearly $50,000] ' and as many dry goods as you will ask ; conceal me 
in any place of safety while you can send to Xew York with an order 
to Sir Henry Clinton from me, and the goods and money will be pro- 
cured so that you can get them unmolested.' [Paulding then told him, 
as he stated on the trial of Joshua H. Smith, a few days after the 
arrest] : 'No, by G — d, if you would give us 10,000 guineas you should 
not stir a step; we are Americans, and above corruption, and go with 
us you must.' We then took him, about twelve miles, to Col. Jamie- 
son's quarters at North Castle." 



Note 8. 

Letter of Colonel Talmadge. 

[Written after Andre's death, it displays tlie intimate relations that sprang up 
between the writer and Andr6, and the natural commiseration wliicli had 
arisenin the former's heart.] 

" Poor Andre, who has been under m}' charge almost ever since he 
was taken, has yesterday had his trial, and though his sentence is not 
known, a disgraceful death is no doubt allotted to him. By heavens ! 
Colonel Webb, I never saw a man whose fate I foresaw whom I so 
sincerely pitied ! He is a young fellow of the greatest accomplish- 
ments, and was the prime minister of Sir Harry on all occasions. He 
has unbosomed his heart to me so fully, and, indeed, let me know al- 
most every motive of his actions since he came out on his late mission, 
and he has endeared me to him exceedingly. Unfortunate man ! He 
will undoubtedly suffer death to-morrow, and, though he knows his 
fate, seems to be as cheerful as though he were going to an assembly. 
I am sure he will go to the gallows less fearful for his fate, and with 
less concern than I shall behold the tragedy. Had he been tried by a 
court of ladies, he is so genteel, handsome and polite a young gentle- 
man that I am confident they would have acquitted him. But enough 
of Andre, who, though he dies lamented, falls justly."' 



55 

The same offioer, in other communications upon the subject, says: 
"From the moment that Andre made the disclosure of his name and 
true character, in his letter to the Commander-in-Chief, which he 
handed to me as soon as he had written it, down to the moment of his 
execution, I was almost constantly with him. I walked with him to 
the place of execution, and parted with him under the gallows, over- 
whelmed with grief that so gallant an officer and so accomplished a 
gentleman should come to such an ignominious end. The ease and 
affability of his manners, polished by the refinement of good society, 
and a finished education, made him a most delightful companion. It 
often drew tears from my eyes to find him so agreeable in conversation 
on different subjects, when I reflected on his future fate, and that, too, 
as I believed, so near at hand." 

" When he came within sight of the gibbet, he appeared to be 
startled, and inquired, with some emotion, whether he was not to be 
shot. Being informed that the mode first appointed tor his death 
could not consistently be altered, he exclaimed, ' How hard is my fate ! ' 
But immediately added, ' It will soon be over.' I then shook hands 
with him under the gallows, and retired." 

Note 9. 

See Raymond's oration, delivered at Tarrytown October 7, 1853, on 
the completion of the monument erected by the young men of West- 
chester county to the captors of Major Andre. 

Note 10. 

In Simms' History of Schoharie County and Border Wars of New 
York, p. 404, it is related, in connection with Sir John Johnson's inva- 
sion of this valley, that "Col. Johnson had with him a small mortar 
and a field-piece, the latter a six-pounder. The carriage for the 
cannon was carried in parts, and required screwing together." 
When the enemy approached the Lower Fort, to wit : the stone 
church with its massive tower, referred to in the original, it is related 
that the follcwing incident occurred : " Col. Johnson halted, after 
crossing Fox's Creek. Preparations were now made to give the 
Americans a passing salute ; the gun-carriage was screwed together, 
and the gun placed upon it. At this time it was supposed, by the men 
in the tower, from the ease with which the gun was carried, and the 
manner of its transportation in a wagon, to be a ' peeled log,' placed 
with the design of frightening its inmates to surrender the for'.. On 
applying the linstock it twice flashed, and the Americans were the more 



56 



confirmed in their opinion tliat the lire was 'playing possum,' but tlie 
third application of the match was followed by a peal of war's thunder 
which sent a ball through one side of the roof of the church, and 
lodged it in a heavy rafter in the opposite side." This ball is now in 
the possession of a merchant in Schoharie. 



POEM 



ALFRED B. STREET. 



POEM. 



What fires the human heart with noblest flame, 

And fills, with grandest swell, the trump of fame — 

Strengthens the sinews, war's dread arms to wield — 

Scoi'ns the red horrors of the battlefield — 

Tunes to triumphant song the failing breath. 

And sheds live brilliance on the brow of death ? 

'Tis love of country ! mystic fire from Heaven ! — 

To light our race up stateliest heights 'tis given; 

To guard man's home — make that his holiest, shrine 

Where his soul's love grows purest, most divine; 

Where dear domestic virtues safely bloom, 

And joy's rich rainbows deck grief's transient gloom; 

At whose bright hearth is changeless summer found 

Heightening to pleasure daily duty's round; 

Where humble wishes sweet enjoyments shed 

Like violets fragrant in their lowly bed. 

Not this alone! beyond the narrow span 

Of single souls, it rivets man to man; 

Links in one circling chain the stretched out hand, 

And makes one fireside of the whole broad land. 

Thus home meets home, though mountains rise between. 

And winter storms beat backward summer sheen ; 

O'er the wide river, through the forest, all 

That most repels, on runs the living wall. 



60 

Against wliich, slioiild its faithful strength remain, 
The world shall huil its angriest waves in vain. 

It turns the rocks to roses, stormiest skies 
To loveliest calm ; where cloudy crags arise 
The anointed eye views plains knee-deep in flowers; 
The ear in dumb wastes hears melodious bowers. 
Deem we the Esquimaux, though brutish, sees 
Heavens that but frown and waters that but freeze! 
Think we the Arab, though untaught, surveys 
Sands that but burn and sunbeams that but blaze! 
No! In that frown the cold-dwarfed shape perceives 
Summer's soft gold poured out on emerald leaves ; 
His wooden streak, wild plunging, ripples smooth 
O'er glassy seas that undulate to soothe; 
And the fierce roamer of the ocean gray 
Treads velvet grass> feels sweet the pleasant ray. 
Till one oasis smiles along his songful way. 

Grand love of Country ! from the earliest time 

Our race has deemed its glory most sublime. 

To its proud praise the lyre has loftiest rung, 

Eloquence woke the music of its tongue; 

A Hector's deeds filled Homer's breast with fire. 

And when shall patriot Scipio's fame expire ! 

Though Rome's dread Eagle darkened earth at will, 

Thy name, Caractacus, shines brightly still! 

Planting his foot upon his native sod 

He fought; though made a slave to Caesar's rod, 

His big heart burst its chains, and up he towered, a God I 

And thus with willing minds we meet to lay 

Our gifts on a loved patriot's shrine to-day. 

Not fortune's f^ivorite he — his humble sail 



61 

Felt but the shock of penury's ceaseless gale ; 

Never he knew the rose, but felt the thorn ; 

His pathway led through chill neglect and scorn ; 

Yet, though man glanced on him disdainful eyes, 

God had built up his nature for the skies ; 

His heart was mighty, though his path was low — 

Man made the cloud — God tinged it with his bow. 

And thus it is ; the humble lifted up ; 

The pearl oft decks the lowest of the cup. 

Fame doffs aside the Sovereign of a day 

To make a Shakespeare King with endless sway; 

Genius, from wealth and titled grandeur, turns 

To touch as with live flame the tongue of Burns. 

And thus though Williams' eye but saw the rim 

Of the low valley, where alone for him 

Life's pathway upward led, his mental sight 

Flashed with the Eagle's from the mountain height ; 

And when the bribe was proffered, off he turned. 

And with a scornful wrath the base temptation spurned. 

Well, well for us, worth, honor were not sold 

By this high patriot heart for British gold ! 

Treason had woven his most cunning coil 

Around our land, its liberty the spoil ; 

The British Lion stood with hungry gloat 

To flesh his fangs within the victim's throat ; 

And had the glittering bribe its errand wrought. 

Treason had found the victory he sought, 

And the fierce Lion fastened in his spring 

Our Eagle's glazing eye, and drooping, dying wing. 

Oh, Treason, foulest demon earth has seen, 

Darkening ev'n darkness with his midnight mien ! 

How oft his spell has fettered Freedom's brand I 



62 

And, for a smiling, left a blighted land I 

In vain has Liberty uprisen; — unbound 

Her glorious folds to call her sons around ! 

In vain the crag has burst out into hordes, 

Trees into lances, thickets into swords ! 

In vain the cataract's white has turned to red, 

And the wind's murmuring to the war-cry dread! 

The dingle's sylvan stillness, where the bird 

Sprang to its wing if but a leaflet stirred, 

Changed to the tramp of steeds, the clang of arms, 

The grassy music to War's wild alarms ! 

In vain, in vain, the blood in vain that ran 

While the soul soaring lifted up the man! 

In vain has Liberty with reverent head 

Heaped to one altar all her sainted dead, 

And kneeling tliere fought sword in hand, till down 

Her foes have fallen, and she but grasped her crown! 

Like a fell serpent Treason low has crept 

In patriot garb, till off disguise he swept 

Striking his blow with such sure aim, his cry 

Of triumph drowned his victim's dying sigh. 

Oh mountain peaks, where clouds were cannon-smoke ! 

Oh glens, whose green light battle-banners broke! 

Oh waves, whose tossings broadside-thunders crushed! 

Oh skies, whose tempests strife's wild tumults hushed! 

All spots where man for native land has fought. 

Have ye not seen how Treason's curse has wrought ? 

How the broad front that Freedom reared to foe 

Has felt base Treason creeping from below. 

Close twining round herself and sons till she 

A grand Laocoon has died to Treachery? 

But paeans to brave Williams, and the two. 



63 

Van Waet and Paulding! no such fate we rue. 

Song to the Theee ! our whole broad land should raise 

One sounding anthem to their patriot praise ! 

For had base Arnold's treason won, we now 

Perchance, instead of jewels on our brow. 

Jewels of freedom, with our doom content, 

Under some kingly bondage might have bent, 

Native or foreign ; or like those wild seas 

Of tropic States, have surged to every breeze, 

Dashing in endless strife — for freedom here, 

And here, for kings, until some ruthless spear 

The war had ended, and a waste of graves 

Upheld a Despot's throne, and ours a land of slaves. 

Now — hail the sight! — a realm of glorious pride 
Touching earth's mightiest oceans either side ! 
Pine meeting Palm in garlands round her head, 
Starred States, striped climates o'er her banner spread, 
Great Washington diffused; his spirit grand 
Incarnate in the person of our land ! 

In this green valley where war wildest reigned, 
Where life's red current every harvest stained. 
Where peace contrasting, now the brightest glows, 
And, place of battle's thistle, smiles the rose. 
Where builds the bird within the shattered shell, 
Plumped with soft moss, that slew where'er it fell, 
Where the blue violet yields the skull its eye. 
Instead of strife's close ranks, upstands the rye. 
Where waves the wheat whence savage plumage flashed. 
And oft avenging Murphy's rifle crashed 
By this Stone Fort that once threw back the tide 
Of conflict as its surges smote its side, 



04 

This day our patriot's ashes we consign 

To his loved eartii, henceforth a sacred shrine, 

Round which to latest years our grateful hearts shall twine^ 

Xow on this flowering of our Century Tree, 

Apotheosis of our history. 

This famed Centennial, it is passing well 

Of patriot hearts and patriot deeds to tell, 

That they in memory's grasp should firmly cling 

As gold in quartz, or pearls in shells, and fling 

Like stars, a lustre o'er our Nation's way, 

Till Time's grand sun shall set, and dawns Eternal Day. 



HISTORICAL ADDRESS 



DR. DANIEL KNOWER. 



HISTORICAL ADDRESS. 

This large concourse of people, tliis fine mili- 
tary display, the presence of these distingnished 
persons, and the attendance of so many ladies to 
grace the occasion, show that the recollection of 
patriotic deeds does not die out in the hearts of a 
free people. David Williams, one of the captors 
of Major Andre, in honor of Avhose memor}" ^ye are 
assembled here to-day, was born in Tarry town, West- 
chester county, in this State, October 21, 1754. He 
entered the Revolutionary army in 1775, at the age 
of nineteen ; fought under Montgomery at the battle 
of St. Johns and Quebec ; and continued in the reg- 
ular patriot services until 1779. The capture of 
Major Andre occurred on the 2 .'3d of September, 
1780, ninety-six years ago to-day. 

David Williams was the eldest of the three cap- 
tors — he being twenty-five years of age, and John 
Paulding and Isaac Van Wart, his compatriots, 
being about twenty years old. The following is 
Williams' account of the capture, as related to Judge 
Tiffany, at his home in this county, February 13, 



68 

1817: "The three [militiamen] were seated beside 
the road in the bushes, amusing themselves at cards, 
when their attention was arrested by the galloping 
of a horse. On approaching the road, they saw a 
gentleimin riding toward them, seated on a large 
brown horse, w hicli was afterward observed to have 
marked on the near shoulder the initials U. S. A. 
The rider was a light, trim-built man, about live feet 
seven inches in height, with a bold military counten- 
ance and dark eyes, and was dressed in a tall beaver 
hat, surtout, crimson coat, with pantaloons and vest 
of nankeen. As he neared them, the three cocked 
their muskets and aimed at the rider, who immedi- 
ately checked his horse, and the following conversa- 
tion ensued : 

Andre — " Gentlemen, I h()[)e you belong to our 
party ! " 

Paulding — " What party ? " 

Andre — "■ The lower party." 

Pauldino; — "We do." This answer threw him 
off his guard. 

Andre — "I am a British officer ; I have been up 
in the country on particular business, and do not 
wish to be detained a single moment." 

He thereupon pulled out a gold watch, and exhib- 
ited it as an evidence that he was a gentleman, and 
returned it again to his fob. Paulding thereupon 
remarked — " We are Americans ! " 



69 

Andre — " God bless my soul ! a man must do any 
thing to get along — I am a Continental officer, going 
down to Dobbs Ferry to get information from 
below." 

Andre then drew out and presented a pass from 
General Arnold in which was the assumed name of 
John Anderson. Seizing hold of the reins of the 
horse, they ordered him to dismount. Andre ex- 
claimed — " You will bring yourselves in trouble." 
" We care not for that," was the reply. They took 
him down ten or fifteen rods, from the road, beside 
a run of water, and Williams proceeded to search 
his hat, coat, vest, shirt and pantaloons, in which 
they found $80 in Continental money ; and at last 
ordered him to take oft' his boots. At this he changed 
color. AVilliams drew oif the left boot first, and 
found nothing in it, and Paulding, seizing it, the foot, 
exclaimed excitedly, " My God ! here it is ! " The 
stocking was then drawn off, and in it, next the bare 
foot, three half-sheets of written paper were found 
enveloped by a half-sheet marked " Contents, West 
Point." Paulding, still greatly excited, again ex- 
claimed, "My God ! he's a spy ! " On pulling off 
the other boot and stocking, a similar package was 
found. "'^' 

Andre was now allowed to dress, and they marched 

* A number of these original papers are preserved, and on exhibition 
in the State Library at Albany. 



70 

liiiii across the road into the field about twenty rods. 
The young men then winked to each other to make 
further discoveries, and inquired from whom he got 
the papers ( " Of a man at Pine's Bridge, a stranger 
to me," replied Andre. He then offered them for 
his liberty, his horse, which was browsing a short dis- 
tance away, and his equipage, watch and 100 guineas. 
This they refused to take, unless he informed them 
where he obtained the manuscript. He I'efused to 
comply, but again offered his horse, equipage, and 
1,000 guineas. They were firm in their denial, and 
Andre increased his oft'er to 10,000 guineas, and as 
many dry goods as they wished, which should be 
deposited in any place desired — they might keep 
him and send some one to New York (they were at 
Tarrytown twenty-eight miles from the city), with 
his order, so that they could obtain them unmolested. 
To this they replied, "that it did not signify for 
him to make any offer, for he should not go." They 
then proceeded to the nearest military station, which 
was at North Castle, about twelve miles distant, and 
delivered him to Col. Jaimesen, the American com- 
manding officer. 

The circumstances of the capture as nan-ated in 
the testimony of Paulding and Williams, given at 
the trial of Smith eleven days after the capture, and 
written down by the Judge Advocate at the time, is 
substantially the same. Williams, in his testimony 



fchere says, ^' He said lie would give us any quantity 
of dry goods, or any sum of money, and bring it to 
any place that we might pitch upon, so that we might 
get it. Mr. Paulding answered, " No, if you should 
give us 10,000 guineas you should not stir one step." 
The importance of the capture of Andre can never 
be too highly estimated. The plan for cutting the 
Colonies in two on the line of the Hudson and Lake 
Champlain had been foiled by the capture of Bur- 
goyne. The possession of West Point would have 
given a successful opportunity for prosecuting the 
same design. No wonder that Washington burst 
into tears when he learned of the treason of Arnold. 
He very well knew what had been our danger, and 
how narrow had been our escape. AVashington wrote 
to Congress, September 28,1870 — three days after 
the capture — ^ saying: "T do not know the party 
that took Major Andre, but it is said that it consisted 
of only a few militia, who acted in such a manner 
upon the occasion as does them the highest honor 
and proves them of great virtue. As soon as I 
know their names I shall take pleasure in transmit- 
ting them to Congress." Again, October 7, 1780, he 
writes Congress, transmitting the findings of the 
court, which had tried Andre, and in his letter he 
says : " I have no^v the pleasure to communicate the 
names of those persons who captured Major Andre, 
and who refused to release him, notwithstanding 



the most earnest importunities and assurances of a 
liberal reward <>n his part. Their names are John 
Paulding, David Williams and Isaac Van Wart." 
Alexander Hamilton, writing in 1780 of the affair, 
says : " Andre tempted their integrity with the offer 
of his watch, his horse, and any sum of money they 
should name. They rejected his offer with disdain." 

Congress gave each of them $1,250, or the same 
value in confiscated lands in AVestchester county, a 
pension of $200, and a silver medal. The medals 
were presented to the captors by General Washing- 
ton at a dinner to which he invited them while the 
army was encamped near Ver Planck's Point ; the 
one presented to David Williams being now in pos- 
session of his oldest grand-son, AVilliam C. Williams, 
of this county."^'" 

David Williams was married to Miss Benedict, of 
Westchester county, by whom he had one son named 
David, who had seven children living, four in this 
county, two in Iowa, and one in Virginia, who are 
worthy descendants in honor and integrity of the 
Revolutionary patriot. He moved to this county in 
1806, and died August 2, 1831, aged seventy-seven, 
and was buried at Livingstonville with military 
honors, where his remains reposed for forty-five 
years, and until the 4th of March, 1876, when they 
were removed to the cemetery at Kensselaerville. 



* It has since been placed in the State Library at Albany. 



73 

Oil the 19tli of July, they vvere removed to the 
Stone Fort in Schoharie, to which destination they 
were escorted by a large procession, headed by the 
American flag and amid martial music. All places of 
business were closed ; the bells tolled, and the cannon 
at the Fort fired a salute as his coffin, wrapped in 
the American flag, was deposited near his present 
resting place. 

On the 1st of May, 1876, the Governor signed the 
following bill introduced by Senator Lamont, it hav- 
ing passed both Houses : 

" For erecting a suitable monument in the ceme- 
tery grounds of the revolutionary Stone Fort at 
Schoharie Court House, to commemorate the virtues 
and memory of David Williams, one of the captors 
of Major Andre, the sum of two thousand dollars, 
to be expended under the supervision of Daniel 
Knower, Ralph Brewster, supervisor of the town 
of Schoharie, and Charles Holmes, county judge of 
Schoharie county, who are hereby appointed a com- 
mission for that purpose, and who are hereby 
authorized to remove the remains of the said David 
Williams from their present burial in the cemetery 
at Rensselaerville, to such cemetery at Schoharie 
Court House, upon first obtaining the consent there- 
to, in writing, of a majority of the descendants of 
said Williams, and upon furnishing proof thereof to 

the comptroller ; but in case such consent in writing 
10 



74 

for said removal sliall uot be uljtaiiied, and proof 
thereof furnished the comptroller within two 
months from the passage of this act, then the above 
appropriation shall be expended by a commission, 
consisting of the comptroller of the State, Erastus 
D. Palmer, and the President of the Rensselaerville 
Cemetery Association, for the erection of the monu- 
ment in the Rensselaerville cemetery.'' 

Paulding is buried near Peekskill, and a monu- 
ment was erected over his remains by the corpora- 
tion of the city of New York in 1827. Near 
Tarrytown the remains of Isaac Van Wart are 
honored by a monument erected by the county of 
Westchester. And now in this centennial year has 
the State of New York recoo-nized bv its Leofisla- 
tare and Governor, this most important event in our 
revolutionary history. An event which occurred 
within its borders, and in which three of her sons 
had the honor, by their disinterested patriotism and 
love of country, to save our country in that import- 
ant crisis of our revolutionary history. General 
Washington wrote to tlie President of Congress, 
October 7, 1780, two weeks after the capture: 
" Their conduct merits our \varmest esteem ; and I 
beg leave to add that I think the public would do 
well to allow thein a handsome gratuity. They 
have prevented in all probability our suffering one 
of the severest strokes that could have been medi- 



75 
tated asfainst us." Yet this one of the most dis- 

o 

interested acts of patriotism and love of country 
recorded in history, strange to say, has been attacked 
and the motives of the actors impugned. 

A bill passed Congress some years since appro- 
priating i^20,000 for erecting a monument to them, 
but did not reach, ''or was defeated in the senate. 
The patriotism of these men has been impugned by 
members of Congress. This bill was likewise 
opposed in the state senate by a senator from New 
York city on the same grounds. In the language 
of the poet, 

"He who ascends to moantaiu tops must liud 
The loftiest hills olad in snow ; 
He who surpasses and excels mankind, 
Must see and feel their hate below." 

Williams lived to be seventy-seven years old and 
died iifty-two years after the event occurred. Isaac 
Van Wart lived to the age of sixty-nine and died 
forty-nine years after the event, and John Paulding 
reached the age of sixty, dying forty years after 
the capture,'^ All three during these long years 

* [From John Gebhard, Jr., the celebrated geologist.] 

Schoharie, N. Y., Oetoher 16, 1876. 
Dr. Knower, 

Dear Sir — In compliance with your request, that I would inform 
you what I know in relation to the standing and character of the late 
David Williams, one of the captors of Major Andre, I would state, 
that I was well acquainted with Mr. Williams for several years im- 



76 

bore unimpeachable characters for honor and integ- 
rity, wliich would not have been possible if they 

mediately preceding his death, and can bear cheerful testimony to the 
high standing for truth and integrity, in which he was held by his 
neighbors and acquaintances 

I was present at his funeral, which was large and imposing. After 
the sermon was preached, the funeral procession proceeded to the 
cemetery, where an able eulogy was delivered by Robert McClellan, 
Esq., and before the remains were lowered to their resting place, R. W. 
Murphy, Esq., standing beside the coffin, with a sorrowful heart, over- 
flowing with gratitude and sympathy, stated to the vast assemblage 
that when he was a young orphan boy, David Williams took him to his 
home, supported and clothed him, gave him a good education and aided 
him in starting in business. He also gave a full and minute account of 
the daily life and habits of the deceased ; and concluded by saying that 
David Williams died as he had lived, through a long life, an upright 

and honest man. 

Respectfully your ob'l serv't, 

JOHN GEBIIARD, Jk. 

Isaac Van Wart is buried at Greenburgh, in the grounds attached to 
the Presbyterian church, of which he was an efficient officer for many 
years. The following inscription on his monument by his fellow-citi- 
zens of Westchester county, who erected it to his memory in 1829, with 
whom he passed most of his life, vindicates the integrity of his character: 

North side — " Here repose the mortal remains of Isaac Van Wart 
an elder in the Greenburgh church, who died on the 23d of May, 1828 
in the 69th year of his age. Having lived the life, he died the death of 
the Christian." 

South side — " The citizens of the county of Westchester erected this 
tomb in testimony of the high sense they entertained for the virtuous 
and patriotic conduct of their fellow-citizen, as a memorial sacred to 
public gratitude." 

East side — " Vincit Amor Patriae. Nearly half a century before 
this monument was built the conscript fathers of America had, in the 
senate chamber, voted that Isaac Van Wart was a faithful patriot, one 



77 

had been marauders and freebooters as represented 
by those who impugned their motives. 

in whom the love of country was invincible, and tliis tomb bears testi- 
mony that the record is true." 

West side— "Fidelity. On the 23d of September, 1780, Isaac Van 
Wart, accompanied by John Paulding and David Williams, all farmers 
of the county of Westchester, intercepted Major Andre on his return 
from the American lines in the character of a spy, and, notwithstanding 
the large bribes offered them for his release, nobly disdained to sacrifice 
their country for gold, secured and carried him to the commanding 
officer of the district, whereby the dangerous and traitorous conspiracy 
of Arnold was brought to light, the insidious designs of the enemy 
baffled, the American army saved and our beloved country free." 

John Paulding. I have not obtained so much of the details of his 
life. The monument erected over his remains near Peekskill in 1827, 
by the corporation of the city of New York, was addressed by William 
Paulding, mayor of New York, believed to have been a relative. We 
understand he has a son residing near Huntington, Long Island, near 
eighty years of age, a retired rear admiral of the navy, a very distin- 
guished gentleman, not only as an officer in the navy, but for his liter- 
ary ability and talents. 

[Extract of a letter from J. R. Simms, Historian of Schoharie County.] 

Fort Plain, Montgomery Co., October 9, 1876. 
Long, long ago was thfi enterprise contemplated. Judge Murphy, 
whom it was our pleasure to know nearly thirty years ago, and who 
was then a worthy citizen of Livingstonville, Schoharie county, was 
brought up from childhood in the family of David Williams as one of 
his own children. He held the character and virtue of his benefactor 
in the highest esteem. No one could estimate his character more 
truthfully, and no man ever knew him better, and the picture he gave 
of him as a man, would compare favorably for candor, integrity and 
benevolence with that of any man in Schoharie county to-day. Talk- 
ing with Judge Murphy at his own residence upon the subject of a 
monument to his god father, we learned that he had been indefatigable 
in his eflPorts to procure one. He repeatedly petitioned Congress to 



7S 

AVilliams, previous to tins eveut, had served four 
years in tlie revolutionary army, and Paulding, only 
three days previous to the capture, had made his 
escape from the Sugar House British Prison* in 
New York. These facts indicate beyond all doubt 
on which side their feelings were. 

Andre has a monument erected in Westminster 
Abbey, which is the highest honor that can be con- 
ferred on the remains of any person in England. 
His remains were removed from this country in a 
coffin mounted with o-old. His brother was created 
a Knight, in honor of his services in this affair, by 
the King of England. 

AVhat were the services Andr^ rendered to Ens:- 
land, compared with the services these three disin- 
terested patriots rendered this country? Let it 
not always be said that Republics are ungrateful. 
Even the motives of the men who commenced the 
Revolution by throwing the tea overboard in Boston 
harbor, and the motives of those who fought the 
battles of Bunker Hill and Lexington were attacked. 

make an appropriation for this purpose, and being a man of good ad- 
dress, he even went in person to Washington to urge upon the law 
makers their duty, as the event we woukl honor was one of a national 
character, it would seem as though he applied to the right source. 

* Paulding made his escape in the dress of a German jager. (ieneral 
Van Cortland says that Paulding wore this dress on the day of the 
capture, which tended to deceive Andre and led him to exclaim " Thank 
God ! I am once more amona friends." 



79 

It has been said tliat their grievances from Great 
Britain did not justify a resort to such measures. 
These men knew that if they yielded one point 
guaranteed to them in the liberal charters that had 
been granted to the Colonies, as an inducement for 
them to emigrate to this country when a wilderness, 
that America would become a second Ireland, and 
all the rischts sfuaranteed to thiem in their charters 
would be crushed out. If I have any pride of 
ancestry, it is in being descended from the men who 
took part in the glorious events where the cannon 
first thundered in the war of the revolution. 

Your commissioners propose to make an appeal 
to any county, city, association, literary club or 
individual, who may subscribe not less than $200 
or more than $1,800, in addition to the $2,000 
appropriated by the State, and to have the names 
of the subscribers inscribed on one of the faces 
of the monument or on a marble tablet to be 
erected in the Fort, as the artists who may design 
the monument may think most appropriate. It is 
proposed to appoint one or more of the most distin- 
guished artists and sculptors in the State to design 
the monument and make it a work of art appropriate 
to the event. 

We are now one hundred years old as a nation. 
Our material prosperity and growth is unparalleled 
in history. For the sake of the future and the per- 



80 

petuity of our free institutions, we should cultivate 
sentiments that will inspire in the youth a strong 
love of country. What more appropriate occasion 
than the present to erect here a work of art, which 
will call attention for all time to the disinterested 
patriotism of these three men who saved our country 
in the revolution ? It was such men among our 
common soldiers that enabled the country to pro- 
duce a Washington. The people, the source and 
fountain of political power, must be kept pure and 
patriotic if we wish to j)erpetuate our republican 
form of government. The more we learn from the 
men of the revolution and the more strictly we 
adhere to the great principles inaugurated in our 
government by its founders, the better for the future 
of our country. Although the disinterested patri- 
otism of these three men has conferred its benefits 
on a great nation of 44,000,000 of people, yet the 
Empire State of New York enjoys the honor of 
having had the event occur within its own borders. 
I feel that her sons and daughters will respond to 
an ap])eal for the erection of a work of art, in this 
beautiful valley of Schoharie, beside this Revolu- 
tionary Fort, that will do Justice to this important 
event, and in which we all may take a just pride. 



THE OLD FORT. 



The following, from a sketch of the lociility surrounding 
the place where David Williams is buried, may be of inter- 
est to those outside of the county who peruse this volume. 
It is from the pen of Dr. Daniel Kstower: 

" On the 1st of June, 1774, the port of Boston was blockaded. 
The people of this valley contributed 525 bushels of wheat 
for their relief. In October, 1780, a strong force of Indians, 
Tories and soldiers, under the command of Sir Johk 
JoHKSON, the celebrated Indian chief Brant and the Seneca 
chief Corn Planter, attacked this place. The inhabitants 
fled to the Fort. The Fort was attacked, but the enemy were 
repulsed by a shower of grape-shot and musket balls from 
the garrison, and retreated. Only two persons in the Fort 
were killed, but one hundred of the defenseless inhabitants 
outside the Fort were murdered by the hostiles on that day. 
Not a house, barn or grain-stack known to belong to a Whig 
was left standing; and it was estimated that 100,000 bushels 
of grain were destroyed. The houses and other property of 
the Tories were spared, but the exasperated Whigs set them 
on fire as soon as the enemy had gone, and all shared a com- 
mon fate. The Fort is now in a perfect state of preservation, 
with the marks of the cannon balls of that day's attack on it. 
The Legislature of this State donated it to the supervisors 
of the county on condition that they keep it in repair." 






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Oil 801 845 A 



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